The German Lounge

[Kilana2]

People with problems: alcohol, drugs, questionable behavior towards women, depressions, people who are unable to read and write, people who don't speak a word German - despite BAMF German classes they received.

One of them recently got a job without speaking German. His boss speaks Russian, that might have gotten him the job. And his wife was very supportive.

As to other clients: they are unemployed and our goal is to get them into a job as soon as possible. Being 64 with health problems makes it difficult, though...

 

[Astra]

Okay, East German.

Did someone call me? Grew up and still live in Dresden, and since there was no West German TV in my childhood, I came to Star Trek rather late (in 2015, to be precise, just in time for the big anniversary the following year and meeting William Shatner at Fedcon)

I've visited Germany fairly often during my holidays and for work. Apart from the DB, it’s a well-organised country with lots of history, art, nature and friendly people.

I've been to Dusseldorf (art musea), Dortmund, Berlin, Hamburg and Munchen (lovely green city) several times. I've also visited Frankfurt (again art), Mannheim, Stuttgart (palace), Heilbronn (wine festival) and Trier (Roman remnants including an amfitheatre).

Heidelberg is still on my wish list.

Come to Dresden, lots of art to be found here as well!

 

[Jim Klag]

How far is Jena from Dresden? Other than my German ancestors, my only connection to Germany is a pair of Zeiss binoculars made in Jena.

 

[Nakita Akita]

How far is Jena from Dresden? Other than my German ancestors, my only connection to Germany is a pair of Zeiss binoculars made in Jena.

I have a clock that says it's made in West Germany. I think it's broken though.

 

[rhubarbodendron]

How far is Jena from Dresden?

Less than 100 miles - about 150 km as the crow flies.

 

[rhubarbodendron]

Did you hear about the loonie who yesterday drove into a carnival parade? More than 50 people injured, many seriousely, 18 of them are children.
Jeez, if I had been there I'd have dragged the moron out iof his car and given him the spanking of a lifetime before handing him over to the cops! I'm curious to learn if he was insane, drugged or drunk (or a combination of any of those).
Eye witnesses claim he accelerated while already in the crowd, so either he confused gas and brake (happens frequently with drivers who are used to a manual gear switch and change to an automatic car) or he did it on purpose. As he has a criminal record for violance it was propably both
I so hope they take away his driving license for life if he was drunk and lock him up for life if he was sober.

 

[Nakita Akita]

Did you hear about the loonie who yesterday drove into a carnival parade? More than 50 people injured, many seriousely, 18 of them are children.
Jeez, if I had been there I'd have dragged the moron out iof his car and given him the spanking of a lifetime before handing him over to the cops! I'm curious to learn if he was insane, drugged or drunk (or a combination of any of those).
Eye witnesses claim he accelerated while already in the crowd, so either he confused gas and brake (happens frequently with drivers who are used to a manual gear switch and change to an automatic car) or he did it on purpose. As he has a criminal record for violance it was propably both
I so hope they take away his driving license for life if he was drunk and lock him up for life if he was sober.

I it was here, and I was able I'd drag him out of the car and kick him repeatedly until someone pulled me away. Unless he was elderly.

 

[Kilana2]

Did you hear about the loonie who yesterday drove into a carnival parade? More than 50 people injured, many seriousely, 18 of them are children.
Jeez, if I had been there I'd have dragged the moron out iof his car and given him the spanking of a lifetime before handing him over to the cops! I'm curious to learn if he was insane, drugged or drunk (or a combination of any of those).
Eye witnesses claim he accelerated while already in the crowd, so either he confused gas and brake (happens frequently with drivers who are used to a manual gear switch and change to an automatic car) or he did it on purpose. As he has a criminal record for violance it was propably both
I so hope they take away his driving license for life if he was drunk and lock him up for life if he was sober.

Unfortunately his lawyer gives him this advice: shut up until you are asked directly. Then say you can't remember anything. People suffering from drug addiction (including alcohol) or dementia are obviously allowed to kill or hurt without consequences.

More so, German rules against stalking are next to non-existent. A stalked person has to die first. And the perpetrators? We have to reintegrate them into society. Find them a job. And accoding to German laws, they are even allowed to refuse jobs for 9,30 Euro per hour and connected with physical demanding labor.

 

[Nakita Akita]

Unfortunately his lawyer gives him this advice: shut up until you are asked directly. Then say you can't remember anything. People suffering from drug addiction (including alcohol) or dementia are obviously allowed to kill or hurt without consequences.

More so, German rules against stalking are next to non-existent. A stalked person has to die first. And the perpetrators? We have to reintegrate them into society. Find them a job. And accoding to German laws, they are even allowed to refuse jobs for 9,30 Euro per hour and connected with physical demanding labor.

I feel bad for you all.

 

[rhubarbodendron]

Your profession must be a very frustrating one, I imagine I agree on the drugs and alcohol thing. Causing oneself to be beyond rational thought ought to count as additional crime or at least as a worsening factor, instead of as a mitigating circumstance.
However, I beg to differ on the stalking rules. At least we do have some now (until what - a decade ago? - we had none at all). I've had probs with a stalker IRL 2 years ago, a former intern, and the police managed to threaten him into desisting. Haven't seen him in 2 years and haven't heard of him in half a year. I got updated on his whereabouts all the time. It can be amazingly helpful to chat with a university's secretary or with the postman.
A colleague received death threats by a stalker in January and we were on security alert at my office until 2 weeks later the police caught the stalker, a former colleague, and brought him to a mental asylum. As the law demands, he was released after three days but so far has not been seen in the vicinity nor made any further threats.So in this case the law worked very nicely. But then admittedly a state office has a much stronger position there than an average citizen.
Online stalkers are harder to get punished but easier to get rid of. You change your username, email and posting style and are invisible to them. It's somewhat unsactisfactory for the victim, though, as you have hardly any means to strike back hard at them.

 

[Nakita Akita]

Your profession must be a very frustrating one, I imagine I agree on the drugs and alcohol thing. Causing oneself to be beyond rational thought ought to count as additional crime or at least as a worsening factor, instead of as a mitigating circumstance.
However, I beg to differ on the stalking rules. At least we do have some now (until what - a decade ago? - we had none at all). I've had probs with a stalker IRL 2 years ago, a former intern, and the police managed to threaten him into desisting. Haven't seen him in 2 years and haven't heard of him in half a year. I got updated on his whereabouts all the time. It can be amazingly helpful to chat with a university's secretary or with the postman.
A colleague received death threats by a stalker in January and we were on security alert at my office until 2 weeks later the police caught the stalker, a former colleague, and brought him to a mental asylum. As the law demands, he was released after three days but so far has not been seen in the vicinity nor made any further threats.So in this case the law worked very nicely. But then admittedly a state office has a much stronger position there than an average citizen.
Online stalkers are harder to get punished but easier to get rid of. You change your username, email and posting style and are invisible to them. It's somewhat unsactisfactory for the victim, though, as you have hardly any means to strike back hard at them.

I've been stalked twice once on line and once in real life.
The on line stalker was scared off by a friend of mine that was on line too who was a member of a motorcycle club.
I'm not sure why the real life guy went away.
I can't recall anyway.
He came to my Barrack(army) and was talking about blowing his brains out. He was an officer and in uniform. It was embarrassing.
Anyway in the USA we have restraining orders, but women and others still get killed even with the restraining orders in place.
So I don't think anything is ever 100 percent perfect.

 

[rhubarbodendron]

I agree. We have restraining orders, too, but they are rather mild, usually, and the police doesn't have enough staff to control whether these orders are being kept. In case of my RL stalker it was rather easy to avoid him since he has such a terrible aftershave. I could smell when he had entered the house and in such cases simply stayed with a neighbour for a chat until he had left again. I think what finally frightened him off was when a janitor caught him redhanded scratching a message into my appartment door. He was not amused and called the cops. Sadly, damage to property rates a good deal higher than a threat to a human.

 

[Nakita Akita]

Okay back to German stuff.
My grandmother who came to the US from Germany used to make these bread things filled with a little bit of cabbage and onions and hamburger. I don't know what she called them.
They were the best things ever!!!!
I think a lot of people in the USA make them.
My boyfriend's mom made them! She was 100% Japanese.
She called them "Kraut burgers. "
My boyfriend's and his sister's head just about exploded when she said it, they thought I'd be offended.
What are they really called? If anyone here knows.

 

[rhubarbodendron]

I've never heard of bread-like ones but they sound a lot like Russian Pierogi.
However, if your grandma made them of pasta dough or a potato dough, then they were Maultaschen or Kartoffelmaultaschen Yummy stuff, indeed.
The British have something similar, made from pie crust dough - they are called Cornish Pastries. I make them occasionally, when I can get the ingredients. I think almost every people has a recipe for some sort of dough filled with some sort of vegetables and meat. It's such a good way to use up leftovers.

Or did you mean something like a crispy roll, cut open and filled with kraut/cabbage and sausages? Like a Hamburger or Hot Dog? With fried pork sausages it's known as Bratwurstsemmel. Afaik the version with Wieners/Frankfurters is nameless.

 

[Nakita Akita]

I've never heard of bread-like ones but they sound a lot like Russian Pierogi.
However, if your grandma made them of pasta dough or a potato dough, then they were Maultaschen or Kartoffelmaultaschen Yummy stuff, indeed.
The British have something similar, made from pie crust dough - they are called Cornish Pastries. I make them occasionally, when I can get the ingredients. I think almost every people has a recipe for some sort of dough filled with some sort of vegetables and meat. It's such a good way to use up leftovers.

Or did you mean something like a crispy roll, cut open and filled with kraut/cabbage and sausages? Like a Hamburger or Hot Dog? With fried pork sausages it's known as Bratwurstsemmel. Afaik the version with Wieners/Frankfurters is nameless.

Hers were bread. Sometimes she didn't put anything inside and it was just hellacious good bread.
The meat and cabbage and onions were baked inside. So it just looked like a bread roll until you bit into it.
Grandma made the best darned bread!!!!

 

[Alexander Corrino]

German bread is amazing. I love going into a bakery and being able to choose from a zillion different kinds of bread.

 

[rhubarbodendron]

The meat and cabbage and onions were baked inside. So it just looked like a bread roll until you bit into it. Grandma made the best darned bread!!!!

oooooooh that sounds delicious! A late friend of mine was a baker and used to wrap smoked ribs (Kasseler) up in the last bits of bread dough and bake them for a breakfast for himself and his employees. Yummy stuff =)

 

[Alexander Corrino]

I'm getting hungry!

 

[KennyB]

I have been living in Esslingen am Neckar for almost 2 years and just noticed this thread! So hello from the Baden-Württemberg area!

 

[Miss Lemon]

Come to Dresden, lots of art to be found here as well!

I’d love to visit, lots of interesting things to see.
I just read our prime minister Rutte will be attending the re-opening of the Semper Gallery today. I should have asked him for a ride.